The present invention generally relates to handling stacks of sliced products that includes lifting the stacks and depositing them within containers having cavities that are close-fitting with respect to the stacks. The apparatus and method of the present invention are particularly suitable for thus handling stacks of sliced food products, especially sliced sausage products such as those of the so-called luncheon meat variety including salami, summer sausage, bologna, ham and the like. More particularly, the invention relates to an apparatus and method for lifting spaced stacks of products while maintaining or enhancing the neatness of the stacks and depositing such stacks into cavities, the apparatus and method allowing for a plurality of stacks of products to be lifted substantially simultaneously and substantially simultaneously deposited into a plurality of cavities that are generally parallel to the plurality of spaced stacks.
In the manufacture and packaging of food products such as sliced sausage products, the products are typically initially formed as large sticks or loaves of sausage or other product. Often, such sticks or loaves are frozen and cut into slices by a high-speed rotary slicer which discharges the slices in loosely arranged stacks of a desired weight. The slices of each stack are then arranged into neater vertical alignment, either manually or substantially automatically, for insertion into snug or close-fitting cavities of a rigid plastic tray, which is later covered and sealed to provide a finished package. An example of a substantially automatic system in this regard is that disclosed in Vedvik and Merdler U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,024.
Manual operations for neatening stacks and filling them into the close-fitting cavities is, of course, very labor intensive. Reductions in the quantity of labor needed and the tedious nature of this labor have been achieved by systems such as those disclosed by said U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,024. Even though previously developed automatic stack depositing systems have represented substantial advances in the art, certain drawbacks tend to be experienced after such automated systems have been used for long time periods. Areas where there is room for improvement include the ability to gain access to the various assemblies and component parts of the apparatus, which access is needed both for cleaning purposes and for clearing jams, which includes the ability to readily remove products, including damaged luncheon meat stacks, from all locations within the apparatus. Also, the occurrence of jamming in previous automated systems is realized more frequently than desired, and such previous automated systems tend to require physical adjustments when changing the height of the stacks of products to be handled by the system. A desirable attribute that is not present in such previously developed automated systems is the ability to easily change to a manual filling operation in the event of a major breakdown in the lifting and depositing mechanism. Additionally, such previous automated systems can include camming assemblies that incorporate ball-shaped cam followers which tend to develop flat spots after extended use, which interferes with the smooth operation of such devices.
The present invention responds to these various factors and provides an apparatus and method for transferring stacks of sliced products from a spaced supply thereof, the transferring being into respective cavities that are close-fitting with respect to the stack of sliced products. In summary, the present invention includes an apparatus and method for transferring a stack of sliced products from a loading station into a close-fitting cavity of a container, the apparatus and method permitting generally parallel orientation and flow of stacks with respect to cavities. A stack lifter assembly raises the stack which is grasped by a picker head which then transports the stack into the close-fitting cavity while maintaining or enhancing the evenness or neatness of the stack. Such an apparatus and method have been found to reduce the likelihood of jams, even after the device is in operation for extensive periods of time, to simplify cleanup and jam clearing procedures, and to permit easy changeover for handling stacks of different sizes.
It is accordingly a general of the present invention to provide an improved stack handling apparatus and method.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved stack handling apparatus and method that is especially reliable even after having been in use for extended time periods.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved apparatus and method which handles an inflow of spaced product stacks in parallel relationship to the outfeed of such stacks deposited within spaced cavities of packaging containers for the product stacks.
Another object of this invention is to provide an improved apparatus and method for depositing stacks of sliced food products into packaging containers therefor in a manner that permits simplified cleaning for sanitary purposes and simplified clearing of damaged or defective product stacks.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved apparatus and method for substantially simultaneously depositing spaced groups of product stacks into substantially equally spaced groups of close-fitting cavities of packaging containers, such apparatus and method including means for assuring proper stack spacing and even alignment of individual slices within the stacks.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved apparatus and method whereby product stacks can be readily deposited into cavities of packaging containers therefor through a manual operation in the event of apparatus breakdown.
These and other objects, features and advantages of this invention will be clearly understood through a consideration of the following detailed description.